Driver injured by gunfire on I-95 in South Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A man was found with a gunshot wound in the parking lot of Live Casino in South Philadelphia after reporting he had been shot while driving on Interstate 95 Saturday night, according to Pennsylvania State Police.

Troopers said the call came in around 7:30 p.m. The victim told police he was traveling southbound on I-95 when his vehicle was struck by gunfire just before the exit for the Walt Whitman Bridge.

He then drove off the highway and stopped at the casino parking lot, where he called 911. He was taken to Jefferson Hospital with a gunshot wound to the calf.

"It's really safe down here, so I can see somebody - a native Philadelphian - thinking, 'I need to go to the complex, to Live, where it's safe so I can make that call,'" Robin Colajezzi said.

Authorities said they are still working to determine what led up to the shooting and have not released a description of the suspect or vehicles involved.

On Sunday afternoon, traffic cameras showed backups around 3 p.m. as state police shut down a portion of the interstate from Christopher Columbus Boulevard to the Walt Whitman Bridge while searching for evidence.

"Shocking. I did not hear about it at all," David Horn said.

The incident marked the second shooting on I-95 in less than a week.

On Dec. 1, a passenger was shot in the arm in what police described as a road rage incident. That shooting happened around 7:15 a.m. just before the Cottman Avenue exit. Police said the driver fired several rounds at the vehicle and was later arrested.

"I don't know why it keeps happening. Maybe people just get easily frustrated for no apparent reason. It's just senseless," Phoutthaprinya Chandavong said.

"Violence is never the answer," Colajezzi said.

State police are asking anyone who may have witnessed Saturday's shooting to contact PSP Philadelphia at 215-452-5216 and reference incident number PA2025-1514623.